Hotel Commonwealth

A harbinger of the revitalisation of blighted Kenmore Square, this 10-year-old hotel has 149 rooms in the shadow of Fenway Park and three of the city's choicest eateries and bars – Eastern Standard, Island Creek Oyster Bar and the Hawthorne – on site. Flush Red Sox fans should spring for the handsome baseball suite, stocked with vintage Babe Ruth, Ted Williams and Jackie Robinson cards, and other memorabilia. Those with bleacher-seat budgets should opt instead for the oversized standard rooms, which all offer king beds. All can take advantage of fun amenities like the DVD lending library, with selections and popcorn delivered to your door. Fever Pitch and Field of Dreams have to be among the choices, right?• 500 Commonwealth Avenue, Boston, 617-933-5000, hotelcommonwealth.com. Doubles from $209

Irving House

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Families will love this laid-back, green guesthouse, mere blocks from Harvard Yard. Children under seven stay free and brood-friendly rooms feature a queen bed for mum and dad, along with a trundle bed or bunk beds with privacy curtains for the little ones. Bookworms of all ages will delight in the lending library – the dozen or so books in each room or on shelves throughout the property are yours for the picking. And if pint-sized travellers want to report all the happenings of their Cambridge trip to grandma and grandpa, the front desk offers a selection of picture postcards that they'll send anywhere, postage gratis.• 24 Irving Street, Cambridge, +1 617 547 4600, irvinghouse.com. Doubles from $85

Samuel Sewall Inn/Bertram Inn

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Lounge in front of an in-room wood-burning fireplace at the Samuel Sewall Inn or the Bertram Inn, and you'll feel worlds away from the city bustle (in warmer months, you'll hear crickets). But these sister properties, across the street from each other in the leafy suburb of Brookline, are just a 20-minute T ride from Boston Common. The 1886 Samuel Sewall Inn and the 1907 Bertram Inn – both built as private homes – share staffers and boast the same creature comforts (Turkish towels, plush robes, on-site parking for $15 a night) alongside period details, antiques and original furnishings. Feeling sprightly? Hoof it up nearby Summit Avenue to Corey Hill Park for striking views of Boston and Cambridge.• Samuel Sewall Inn, 143 St Paul Avenue, Brookline +1 617 713 0123, samuelsewallinn.com. Doubles from $119; Bertram Inn, 92 Sewall Avenue, Brookline +1 617 566 2234, bertraminn.com. Doubles from $119

Clarendon Square Inn

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Foodies flock to the South End, and for good reason: the picturesque enclave is buzzing with some of the city's best restaurants. This historic townhouse-turned-bed and breakfast is the perfect base for culinary exploration. Each of the stylish rooms – from the cheaper interior queen to the splurge-worthy, apartment-sized luxury suite – is decked out with thoughtful touches, and the whole property, including the parlour, baby grand piano, library, and sunny back deck, is yours to enjoy. At the end of a long day spent noshing and nibbling, you can sip wine under the stars in the rooftop hot tub – yes really! – and dream about your next meal.• 198 W Brookline Street, +1 617 536 2229, clarendonsquare.com. Doubles from $125

Inn at St Botolph

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A swish but more affordable alternative to its sister property XV Beacon, this Celeste Cooper-designed inn, in a converted brownstone near the Prudential Centre and Newbury Street's shops, is appropriately named for the patron saint of travellers (and for the street it's on, of course). You can really settle in for a few days, as each of the 16 spacious suites – decorated in graphic, deco-esque style – has a fully equipped kitchenette and a queen-sized bed, and all but the studios have gas fireplaces. There's also a fitness centre and continental breakfast is served daily in the lounge.• 99 St Botolph Street, Boston, +1 617 236 8099, innatstbotolph.com. Doubles from $189

Hotel Veritas

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You'd be forgiven for mistaking this Mark Boyes-Watson-designed Harvard Square hotel for a grand private manor – after all, the facade is a reconstruction of the 1880s home that once stood on the site. But the sleek lobby, with its curving couches and gilded walls, is decidedly modern. Bedrooms are intimate but well-appointed, with Etro bath products, cushy Anichini linens, marble bathrooms and mirrored nightstands (five have private balconies). Taste the local flavour by ordering a New England brew or a cocktail crafted from area spirits in the Simple Truth Lounge downstairs – retire to the patio and you'll sit on chairs made in Cambridge by designer Adam Simha. If it's Saturday night, don't be alarmed by the parade of rollerskaters and divas across the street; it's just the colourful crowd exiting The Donkey Show, American repertory theatre's long-running disco romp at the Oberon theatre.• One Remington Street, Cambridge, +1 617 520 5000, thehotelveritas.com. Doubles from $149

Kendall Hotel

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Local artist Charlotte Forsythe and her husband, architect and developer Gerald Fandetti, turned a shuttered Victorian firehouse across from the Kendall Square T-stop into this 77-room hotel, infusing it with personality and warmth. In keeping with the theme, metal fire trucks, old photos, hats and other firehouse antiques and memorabilia dot the homey property (there's even a collection of patches from visiting current and retired firemen, who exchange them for a special discount). But you don't have to be an engine-and-ladder enthusiast to relish the full breakfast buffet of pastries, cheese, pancakes, eggs, bacon, and from-scratch granola (included in the price), or to raise a glass with other guests in the rooftop solarium during wine hour (5pm-6pm, Mon-Thurs).• 350 Main Street, Cambridge, +1 617 577 1300, kendallhotel.com. Doubles from $129

The College Club of Boston

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For a stay steeped in history, try a ridiculously high-ceilinged room at this 122-year-old women's college club, the oldest in the US. The Back Bay Club has hosted non-members since the 1990s and, from 2005 to 2008, each of the 11 rooms was renovated by a different local designer and decorated for – and dedicated to – a specific college. The Connecticut College room, for one, was conceived by Lisey Good of Good Interiors, and features deep camel walls (in honour of the mascot), antique maps, period furniture and fabric in the school's colours, blue and white. Continental breakfast and afternoon cookies are included, as are modern amenities such as Wi-Fi and air-conditioning (televisions, however, are blissfully absent from the rooms).• 44 Commonwealth Avenue, +1 617 536 9510, thecollegeclubofboston.com. Doubles from $154

HI-Boston

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Green-minded travellers will appreciate Hostelling International's year-and-a-half-old facility on Stuart Street. Housed in the 19th-century Dill Building and constructed to LEED-certification standards, the industrial-chic 480-bed hostel has energy-efficient elevators and lighting (and plenty of natural light from large windows), low-flow showers, toilets and taps, even chairs and tables made from recycled materials in the dining area. Whether you choose the dorm-style accommodation with four or eight beds, or one of 22 private ensuite rooms, bedlinen, Wi-Fi, continental breakfast and use of all shared spaces (library, kitchen, game room) are all included. While you can easily explore nearby Chinatown and the Theatre District solo, the hostel offers daily free and low-cost activities, such as neighbourhood tours and museum visits to get you acquainted with the city outside your door.• 19 Stuart Street, +1 617 536 9455, hiusa.org/boston. Dorm beds from $40, private rooms (sleep three) from $130

Beacon Hill Hotel

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Elegant Beacon Hill, with its brick pavements, quaint shops and cobblestones, is the quintessential Boston neighbourhood (Secretary of State John Kerry lives in a Louisburg Square manse, though he's not at home much these days). It oozes charm – as does this 13-room inn spanning two 19th-century townhouses on lovely Charles Street. Peter and Cecilia Rait, who founded La Brasserie de L'Entrecôte restaurant in Portugal before moving to Boston, were inspired by the hotels they stayed at while travelling around Europe to open the Beacon Hill Hotel in 2000. The recently renovated rooms have plantation shutters and windows that actually open, as well as black-and-white photography and new TVs, but the best perk is the complimentary breakfast at the award-winning bistro. Also nice is the private roof deck.• 25 Charles Street, +1 617 723 7575, beaconhillhotel.com. Doubles from $215